TITLE: Communication and Supervision of Alcohol in the family: Parental Perspectives
SHORT TITLE:Communication and Supervision of Alcohol in the family
AUTHORS:
Nigel Sherriff, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, Brighton
Louise Cox, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, Brighton
Lester Coleman, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, Brighton
Debi Roker, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, Brighton
Correspondence to: Dr Nigel Sherriff, Trust for the Study of Adolescence, 23 New Road, Brighton, BN1 1WZ, UK. E-mail: , Tel: 01273 693311
Contract/grant sponsors: Alcohol Education and Research Council.
Abstract
It is now well acknowledged that parentscan have a central role in supporting sensible alcohol use and reducing alcohol misuseamongst young people. However, little research has considered how communication and supervision in relation to alcohol actually takes place within the family. Drawing upon interviews with the parents of young people aged 13-17 years(n = 40), this article describes the strategies and tactics that many parents use in communicating, monitoring, and supervising alcohol use within the family. The findings revealed that many parents lack the guidance needed to convey ‘sensible drinking’ messages to young people, and wish for greater information and support about many different issues associated with young people and alcohol. The research also highlights potential pathways to reduce harm from alcohol misuse.
Policy background
Alcohol use remains widespread amongstmany young people both nationally in the UK and elsewhere (Coleman and Cater, 2003; Hayes and others, 2004; Newburn and Shiner, 2001; Slater and others, 2006). Reducing the early uptake is particularly important given that research evidence suggests that the later adolescents delay their first alcohol drink, the less likely they are to become regular drinkers (e.g. Spoth and others, 1999).
With the long-term goal of changing the culture of youth binge-drinking, recent research has tended to advocate a harm-reduction approach. Such an approach stipulates that if young people are going to drink, then how can we ensure that they stay safe and reduce the likelihood of associated harms? (Coleman and Cater, 2005, 2006; McBride and others, 2000; Wright, 2002).
Indeed, in 2004, the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit published the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England (Cabinet Office, 2004), which outlines a framework for tackling the problems associated with alcohol misuse in England. The strategy document details a number of key aims in this respect including: better identification and support for individuals with alcohol problems; preventing and tackling alcohol-related crime and disorder; working with industry to reduce irresponsible promotions, and; improving the information available to individuals to start changing the ‘drinking to get drunk’ culture. In its framework, the Strategy explicitly acknowledges the importance of families in “making the strategy happen” (p.19), by parents providing young people with “clear and accurate information, and encouragement to make responsible decisions” (p.20). Consequently, the research study we describe in this article aimed to improve the evidence-base surrounding how parents communicate and supervise young people in relation to alcohol.
Alcohol and families: what do we know?
There is an increasing awareness of the role that parentscan have in affecting the development of their children’s drinking behaviour (e.g. Barnes and others, 2000; Hayes and others, 2004; Wood and others, 2004), and in reducing the incidence and impact of alcohol misuse upon young people (Orford and Velleman, 2002; Spoth and others, 2001). For example, there is a considerable body of evidence demonstrating that adolescents who are poorly monitored by their parents begin alcohol consumption at an early age, tend to drink more, and are more likely to develop problematic drinking problems (e.g. Barnes and others, 2000; Beck and others, 2003; DiClemente and others, 2001; Guo and others, 2000; Thomas and others, 2000).Moreover, studies suggest that good quality parent-child relationships are generally associated with lower levels of adolescent drinking, as well as lower rates of problematic (mis)use (e.g. Barnes and others, 2000).
In general, there is clear evidence that sensible parental drinking, combined with open communication and moderate levels of parental supervision, is most likely to lead to a reduction in alcohol-related harm (Beinart and others, 2002; Foxcroft and Lowe, 1995; Newburn and Shiner, 2001). Yet despite the clear links between the family environment and adolescent alcohol usage (e.g. Ennett and others, 2001; van der Vorst and others, 2005; Yu, 2003), a number of important gaps in the literature remain. Although many aspects of family life have been investigated as risk and protective factors for adolescent alcohol (mis)use (e.g. factors such as parental drinking, authority, attitudes, nurturance, and monitoring, and other wider aspects such as family structure, socio-economic factors, and broader cultural influences and norms; see Hayes and others, 2004), there is a relative dearth of work exploring parent-childcommunication and supervision within families.More specifically, little direct attention has been given to describing how parent/young people communication and supervision in relation to alcohol actually takes place(Ennett and others, 2001).
Two recent studies by the Trust for the Study of Adolescence (TSA) have provided some insights into family processes and alcohol (although this was not the aim of either study). For example, a study by Stace and Roker (2005) found that many parents find it hard to supervise alcohol consumption, and when it does occur, it tends to be based mainly on intuition. Furthermore, Coleman and Cater’s (2005) research into young people’s ‘risky’ drinking also identified that most young people would value more discussion and communication with parents and carers about alcohol. Both studies showed that many parents lack guidance in conveying sensible drinking messages to young people. The research described in this article explored this issue further and had two main aims: First, we wanted to explore the strategies that parents use to communicate about alcohol within the family, and whether (and if so how), they attempt to supervise sensible drinking; second, we wanted to explore what information and support parents wanted in this respect, and develop appropriate materials to meet this need (see Cox, Sherriff, Coleman, and Roker, 2006a, 2006b, 2006c).
Methodology
The study took place over one year from the beginning of April 2005, and consisted of both secondary and original research. In the first instance, secondary analyses of 180 interviews (115 young people and 65 parents) from two existing TSA data-sets (Stace and Roker, 2005; Coleman and Cater, 2005) were conducted in order to elicit themes likely to be of relevance for the original aspect of the study. In an area of such little research, this secondary analysis was essential in providing a ‘head-start’ in order to focus the lines of the investigation. The data generated by these two projects were analysed using NUD*IST (a software package to assist in qualitative data analysis) and focused on issues that were mentioned by parents in the interviews. Five main themes emerged in relation to how parents and young people ‘relate’ about alcohol. These included:
- Communication – examples of parents discussing alcohol with young people.
- Supervision – examples of parents trying to monitor, supervise, or control young people’s use of alcohol.
- Modelling – instances of parents mentioning their own use of alcohol, or how their alcohol use might be seen by their children.
- Legal and health issues – information about what parents know about the law in relation to young people and alcohol, or about health issues (e.g. alcohol units).
- Difficult issues – examples of how parents address ‘difficult’ issues that arise in relation to alcohol (e.g. a young person wanting alcohol to take to a party, or coming home drunk).
Following the secondary analysis, an original cross-sectional qualitative study involving the parents of young people was then conducted.
Sample
A total of 40 parents were interviewed for the research, and were reached through a variety of routes including advertising in local newsletters, parenting groups, local universities, and the local council. Only parents with teenagers aged 13-17years were selected to take part in the study. Given the age at which young people start experimenting with alcohol (averaging around 12 or 13 years; Honessand others,1999) these parents are likely to draw upon recent alcohol-related issues, concerns, and experiences within the family.
Participants were purposively selected to ensure that certain groups were included in the research. Consequently, the final sample was diverse and included parents who differed by age; socio-economic status; ethnicity; location (urban vs. rural); family structure (single-parent, two-parent, and step-parents); parental attitudes and use of alcohol (ranging from abstainers to heavier users), and; child’s current use of alcohol (ranging from abstainers to heavier users).
Data collection and analysis
Interviews took place either in the participant’s own home or in the TSA offices in Brighton (a small number were also conducted by telephone). Most interviews lasted for approximately 30-45 minutes and were semi-structured around the five main topics elicited from the secondary analysis. All interviews followed a schedule consisting of the five topic areas i.e. communication, supervision, modelling, legal and health issues, and difficult issues. The interview schedule was designed to act as an aide-mémoire to ensure coverage of the same kinds of questions with each interviewee, whilst still maintaining a degree of flexibility during the discussions.
All parents agreed to the tape-recording of their interview, and data from the audio tapes were transcribed verbatim. To assist in analysing the material, transcripts were coded using the NUD*IST data analysis package to provide a consistent system for cataloguing the data set.
Ethical considerations
The research was undertaken in accordance to TSA’s ethical guidelines. These guidelines specify procedures relating to the protection of participants in research, informed consent, confidentiality and the use of information, feedback, disclosure, expenses, payment, and organisational matters. All TSA research staff hold current CRB (Criminal Records Bureau) checks.
Results
In this article we outline a number of significant themes that emerged from the interviews with parents including: communication; supervision; modelling and influences, and; legal and health issues.
Communication
Research evidence on alcohol and the family indicate a number of factors that are likely to influence young people’s drinking. For example, Highet (2005) found that communicating and negotiating openly with children seems to be an effective strategy in helping young people develop and sustain a sensible relationship with alcohol (see also Ennett and others, 2001; Foxcroft and Lowe, 1991; Hayes and others, 2004; Wood and others, 2004). In our research, we asked parents about the different kinds of techniques or strategies they used for talking about alcohol within the family. Parents reported that one of the main ways of initiating conversation was to use examples of personal, family, or peer experiences. For instance, many parents reported basing a conversation around their own encounters with alcohol. Other ‘conversation starters’ included using a specific incident when a friend or family member was drunk or ill as a result of excessive alcohol use, and using this as a timely basis for discussion within the family:
‘We have talked about it when one of the older one’s friends drank way too much once….so we were able to talk about it after that.’ (mother of one, age 14years)
Parents talked about a wide range of messages that they try to communicate to young people in relation to alcohol use. One of the main messages was that of ‘moderation’, and that when used in a safe and sensible way, alcohol can be a normal part of adult life. Other messages parents felt were important to portray related to personal safety, the law regarding young people and alcohol, and the health implications of misusing alcohol. Less common, but very important to some parents, were messages to do with the amounts of alcohol young people drink, the type of alcohol, and the fact that alcohol can become addictive.
Parents also talked about a range of difficult issues in relation to communicating with young people about alcohol. Parents said they often felt worried that if they explicitly asked young people not to do something, they would be more likely to do the very thing that they have been asked not to do. Furthermore, parents reported the need to try and reach some sort of communicative ‘balance’. For example, many parents said that they did not want to pry or interfere, and wanted to ensure the development of independence and personal choice in their child:
‘I think it’s the same old thing, if your parents tell you something, unless you are the perfect child, you’re either not gonna take any notice of them, or you’re gonna go and try whatever it is they’ve told you not to.’ (mother of one, age 17years)
Parents were also asked whether anything had helped with communication about alcohol in their family. Particular techniques or strategies included that of talking ‘little and often’ about the consequences and implications of alcohol use, and providing young people with clear messages and information. Moreover, parents talked about the need to ensure that young people are given the chance to initiate conversations when they are ‘in the mood’ for talking. Negotiation about rules and boundaries were also considered very important. This negotiation required the parent to respect young people and view them as young adults, whilst at the same time ensuring that communication lines are kept open between young people and their parents. Parents also said that ‘normalising’ alcohol use, rather than forbidding it, helped initiate open and general communication:
‘… it was always our intention to talk about alcohol in a way that he doesn’t feel he’s being talked down to. And allowing him to express interest, concern, ask questions and so on. So, it’s always been an open discussion between the two - well, three of us.’ ( father of one, age 15years)
What was clear from these findings was that for many parents, drinking is perceived as a normal part of family life, and many parents reported engaging in purposeful discussion and negotiation with their young people as a way of initiating them into safe and ‘sensible’ drinking. However, what was also clear was that many parents concerns, about how to start conversations about alcohol and how to communicate effectively with young people about alcohol use, were often to the fore. The parents we interviewed reported feeling ill-equipped in relation to communicating and negotiating about alcohol use within the family, and wished for greater advice and support in this respect.
Supervision
Evidence from the literature tends to suggest that parental supervision and monitoring arerelated to young people’s alcohol-related attitudes and behaviours (Barnes and others, 2000; Hayes and others, 2004; Highet and others, 2005; Newburn and Shiner, 2001; Stice and Barrera, 1995; Wood and others, 2004). For example, a number of longitudinal studies have shown that higher levels of parental supervision and control of alcohol use in early adolescents, is associated with lower levels of alcohol use (Barnes and Farrell, 1992), and a reduced likelihood for the onset of heavy drinking amongst young people (Reifman and others, 1998).
However, in our researchmany parents said they foundsupervision and control of alcohol more difficult to deal with than communication per se. Moreover, parents said they wanted more information and support about how best to supervise alcohol use in the family. When asked about specific limitations or rules in relation to alcohol supervision, few parents had any. For example, some parents said that in most circumstances a parent simply has to trust a young person and that young people cannot be ‘managed’ or ‘controlled’.
‘It’s difficult to impose any limits, ‘cos you’re not actually physically there and with teenagers, you have to give them a measure of independence and encourage them to sort of, regulate themselves, to a degree, with parental encouragement and boundary setting.’ (father of two, aged 14years and 17years)
Many parents did attempt to limit the type of alcohol young people were allowed. Here parents differentiated between ‘softer’ alcoholic drinks such as beer and lager, versus ‘harder’ drinks such as spirits. Parents also made reference to alco-pops, with many concerned that young people did not recognise their alcoholic content:
‘Well, it’s usually - I’ve always said, you can drink beer, weak beer. Not strong beer and not those horrible alco-pop things. I would never ever have them in my house, or spirits.’ (mother of one, age 15years)
Parents reported a number of difficult issues that they had encountered in relation to the supervision of young people’s alcohol use within the family. Some parents said that they did not want to impose harsh limitations on their children, particularly if it would make young people stand out and appear different to their friends. Other parents reported that one of the main difficult issues to deal with was negotiation. Several parents commented on the dilemma that if a young person is going to drink alcohol anyway, then to what extent should a parent supply alcohol or allow alcohol in the home. These issues were closely related to safety, with some parents saying that they would prefer a young person and his/her friends to drink alcohol in the home, as opposed to drinking outside of the home, which might lead to them approaching strangers and asking them to buy alcohol: